Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

Arts: Migrant Workers

Lord Stevenson of Balmacara: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to permit exemptions to the proposed immigration skills charge for companies in the creative industries where such companies contribute through voluntary levies to the Creative Skillset Skills Investment Fund, or to the collective arrangements to fund training that are currently in force.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: The Government is considering carefully the Migration Advisory Committee’s recommendations on the rate and scope of the Immigration Skills Charge. This includes considering the impact on sectors with other skills levies or charges in place. In advance of finalising the regulations that will introduce the charge from April 2017, we will take account of evidence about the likely impact on different types of organisation.

Small Businesses: Apprentices

Lord Aberdare: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what funding will be available to firms which are too small to pay the Apprenticeship Levy when it is introduced in 2017 to enable them to continue to offer, or begin to offer, apprenticeships, and how much those firms will have to contribute themselves.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: Employers with a pay bill of less than £3 million will not have to pay the levy. This is more than 98% of all employers. These employers will continue to have access to government funding to support apprenticeships. We will provide further details on the support available later this year.

Apprentices: Taxation

Lord Aberdare: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether, after the introduction of the Apprenticeship Levy, incentive payments will continue to be made available for (1) small firms offering apprenticeships, (2) apprenticeships offered to 16–18 year olds, and (3) successfully completed apprenticeships.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: In English Apprenticeships: Our 2020 vision we set out our plans for introducing a simple and transparent funding model alongside the introduction of the apprenticeship levy. We want this to continue to encourage employers to take on 16-18 year old apprenticeships, as well as encourage take up of the higher quality training offered by apprenticeship standards. Further information on new arrangements will be made available by the summer.

Apprentices

Lord Aberdare: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they are considering introducing a more streamlined process to become a registered training organisation in order to encourage more employers to deliver their own specialist apprenticeship training.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: We have committed to streamline the process to reduce barriers to new training providers entering the market and joining the Register of Training Organisations, so that there is a broad and flexible range of high quality providers of apprenticeship training. We will consult with employers to help us determine what this process should look like in the future. We recognise the important contribution of employers that provide apprenticeship training and want to ensure this continues.

Department of Health

Liverpool Women's Hospital

Lord Storey: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what was the cost of building the Liverpool Women’s Hospital, and whether it was built under a private finance initiative scheme.

Lord Prior of Brampton: This information is not available centrally. This information may be obtained from the Liverpool Women’s NHS Foundation Trust. We have written to Robert Clarke, Chair of the Liverpool Women’s NHS Foundation Trust informing him of the noble Lord’s enquiry. He will reply shortly and a copy of the letter will be placed in the Library.

Department for Energy and Climate Change

Natural Gas: EU Action

Lord Stoddart of Swindon: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth on 24 February (HL6131) concerning a proposal by the EU to requisition member states' gas supplies under certain circumstances, whether such a policy would require (1) parliamentary consent, and (2) a referendum.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: There is no suggestion in the proposals that the EU will requisition Member States’ gas supplies. The proposals are at a very early stage and we are engaging with the Commission to ensure that the final version is practical and proportionate. The proposals do not involve any agreement by the UK to transfer power or competence to the EU. These proposals are subject to the usual scrutiny process of both Houses.

Hinkley Point C Power Station

Lord West of Spithead: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the reply by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth on 10 March (HL Deb, col 1406), whether the 60 per cent of jobs guaranteed in the supply chain for Hinkley Point remain guaranteed for the third nuclear plant and beyond, with which the Chinese are fully involved.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: The government is working to maximise the economic and social benefits accruing to the UK local and national economies as the result of the development of all new UK nuclear power stations. The developers of New Nuclear Power Plants, Hinkley Point C located in Somerset, Wylfa Newydd on the Isle of Anglesey and Moorside in West Cumbria are all working towards ensuring that 60% or more is spent with UK companies For further proposed new build including Sizewell C in Suffolk, Oldbury in South Gloucestershire & Bradwell in Essex, the Government is working with the new build developers to match or better this percentage for work placed with UK firms.

Nuclear Power

Lord West of Spithead: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether any of the recommendations of the Report from the Science and Technology Committee Nuclear Research and Development Capabilities (3rd Report, Session 2010–12, HL Paper 221), particularly the development of a long-term strategy for nuclear energy looking beyond 2025, have been taken forward.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: Government provided a response to the Science and Technology Committee’s Nuclear Research and Development Capabilities Report in February 2012, setting out the actions that would be undertaken in response to the Committee’s recommendations. The response is attached. Subsequently, Government worked with both Industry and Academia to develop and publish the Nuclear Industrial Strategy and a number of supporting documents in March 2013. The strategy set out, in detail, ambitions and plans for the role of nuclear in the UK energy mix to 2050 and beyond. The Nuclear Industrial Strategy also set out the remit for the creation of both the Nuclear Industrial Council and the Nuclear Innovation and Research Advisory Board (NIRAB), to provide advice, assistance and coordination across the relevant parties in the nuclear landscape. A working group was also created under the umbrella of the Low Carbon Innovation Coordination Group (LCICG) to better coordinate public sector spending in this area.In the recent Spending Review, the first since the Committee’s Report, Government announced at least £250m of funding for nuclear R&D. This funding is made up of 2 components: 1) an ambitious nuclear R&D programme; 2) a competition to select the best value Small Modular Reactor design for the UK.



Nuclear: 2012 Govt Resp, HoL Science & Tech Cttee
(PDF Document, 157.74 KB)

Electricity Generation

Lord Berkeley: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the reply by the Prime Minister on 9 March that "we have to make sure that we get cost-effective electricity and that we go green at the lowest cost" (HC Deb, col 276), why they have decided not to support the Swansea Lagoon project but are supporting the Hinkley Point nuclear power station, in particular in the light of the Hinkley Point project’s uncertain completion date.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: The negotiations regarding a Contract for Difference for the proposed Swansea Bay Tidal lagoon remain ongoing. Tidal Lagoon Power (TLP) have put forward a number of alternative proposals to their 35 year strike price proposal and as these would be a significant deviation from Government policy it is right that we take time to consider these proposals as part of the on-going due diligence process.Beyond the consideration of TLP’s alternative proposals the independent review, which Government announced on the 10 February, we will consider alternative approaches to financing tidal lagoons more generally, providing an evidence base to ensuring decisions are taken in the best interest of bill-payers – both today and in the future.While we have made good progress with the TLP the review will need to have been completed before a final decision can be made on the Swansea Bay proposal. Hinkley Point C would be a good deal for consumers – support for Hinkley would deliver around 7% of the country’s electricity needs with secure and reliable, low-carbon power.We remain confident that the deal on Hinkley Point C will go ahead. We intend to publish a summary of the Value for Money assessment for Hinkley along with the contracts, once the documents have been entered into.